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Peter Andre - Source: Reuters -
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Australian pop star Peter Andre has won substantial damages from a British tabloid newspaper which claimed he cheated on his estranged wife, former glamour model Jordan.
Andre, who recently split from his wife - whose real name is Katie Price - was on Friday awarded the undisclosed payout from The Sunday People by a High Court judge in London.
The 36-year-old singer sued the newspaper after it printed a story in May implying he made inappropriate advances toward a Jordan lookalike while still married.
Dressed in a black suit and open-neck black shirt, an elated Andre told reporters outside the court he hoped the court's decision would "bring these rumours and lies to an end and let me move on with my life".
"This story has led to a lot of speculation about whether I was faithful to my estranged wife which even led her to mention it on a breakfast television program last week," Andre said, reading from a prepared statement.
"I have never been unfaithful to my wife, not with this girl or with anyone else.
"I am pleased that the Sunday People have now accepted that their story was untrue and hurtful to myself."
Andre warned that he would not hesitate suing other publications if they published untrue stories about him.
"If anyone slanders my name I will not hesitate in taking action against them," he said.
During the libel case, Andre's solicitor Mike Brookes told the court the newspaper's allegations were "very upsetting and offensive to Mr Andre, as they are untrue".
Andre split from his wife in May after he apparently became upset over pictures showing her drunk in a nightclub cosying up to another man.
Jordan, who had two young children with Andre during their four-year marriage, has denied being unfaithful to the singer.
There has been intense media interest in the British media about the split, with Jordan having appeared on various television chat shows and in magazine articles detailing their rocky marriage.
Andre insisted after his court victory that he was happy.
"To be honest the general British public and most of the media have been unbelievable to me and I can't complain about that and I am grateful for it," he said.
Lawyers for MGN Ltd, which owns the newspaper, said the publisher accepted the allegations made in the story were untrue.
"The defendant wishes to apologise to Mr Andre and is joining in the making of this statement in the hope that it will assist in setting the record straight," solicitor Sarah Toolan said.
